High Tech Capsule- To Decrease The Use Of Injections.
An MIT-led research team has developed a capsule containing drugs essentially to replace insulin injections for type 1 diabetes patients who need to take injections by themselves on a daily basis.
The capsule containing insulin is about the size of a blueberry, which contains a small needle made up of compressed insulin, which is injected after the capsule reaches the stomach to release insulin. While testing on animals, researchers showed that the capsule can deliver enough insulin to tackle type 1 diabetes as compared to insulin injections and also can be used to deliver other protein drugs.
Let us have a look at the distinctive features of the capsule:-
- Capability to Self Orient:-
The researchers got the idea of self orientation and the predictable landing pattern of the capsule from the tortoise known as leopard tortoise. This tortoise has the ability to roll onto its back because of its high, steep dome shell that allows it to right itself in a correct position.
The capsule is just made up of one needle, allowing it to inject the drug into the interior of the stomach, then it is broken down by stomach acids.
Nearly 100% compressed, freeze dried insulin is present on the tip of the needle. Within the capsule, the needle is attached and held in place by a spring disk which is made up of sugar. When the person swallows the capsule, the water in the stomach dissolves the sugar disk, releasing the spring which then allows the needle to inject the drug i.e. insulin into the interior of the stomach wall.
Because our stomach wall does not have many pain receptors, the patient would not feel the pain produced by the injection. Scientists in order to ensure that the drug is injected into the stomach wall only, have designed their systems in such a way that no matter how the capsule lands into the stomach, it will be able to orient itself correctly, so that the tip of the needle is in contact with the stomach lining and injects the drug there itself.
Once the tip of the needle is injected into the stomach wall, it will release the drug and the insulin released dissolves at a rate that can be controlled by the researchers as the capsule is prepared. In one study conducted, it took about half an hour for the insulin to be fully released into the bloodstream.
2) Patient compliant:-
When the tests were conducted on pigs, it showed that the 300 micrograms of insulin can be administered successfully. More recently, it was shown that the dose could be increased up to 5 mg, which is comparable and similar to the dose that the patient with type 1 diabetes needs to inject.
When the capsule is swallowed and once the needle injects insulin and releases its content, the capsule can then harmlessly pass through the digestive tract. The researchers found no adverse effects associated with the capsule nor with the shaft of the needle as they both are made up of biodegradable polymer and stainless steel components.
The MIT along with Novo Nordisk is working,developing and optimizing the technology for the production of desired capsules. The researchers at MIT and Novo Nordisk believe that this type of drug delivery systems can be used not only for insulin but also for any protein drug that normally needs to be injected, such as immunosuppressants to treat rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease.
The aim of the researchers at MIT and Novo Nordisk is to make the drug administration easy for the patients and especially for those medications which needs to be injected.
This type of emerging research in the field of medicine is very beneficial to the patients and also serves to be more patient compliant.
